Venom
by NyxTheWolf
Summary: A oneshot written for RandomReggie, she requested whump and I delivered. Rated T as a precaution.


**Venom**

Harry was standing behind a crate, shielded from view by the invisibility cloak. It was quite dark in the Shrieking Shack, but by the dim candlelight he could see two figures. One was sitting at a table, looking down at the wand Harry knew to be Dumbledore's. He had the Elder Wand the whole time, but after his death he could no longer keep it out of Voldemort's reach. He now possessed the most powerful wand in existence.

A coiled serpent was suspended in mid air, surrounded by a shimmering sphere. It coiled around slowly as though it were underwater, surveying the men in the room with curious eyes. Nagini's protective bubble slowly orbited the space around where Voldemort was sat.

The other figure was that of Severus Snape. He was standing, apparently begging to return to the castle to look for Harry. He was begging to leave this place, to be safely away from Voldemort.

"Why does it not work for me, Severus?" asked Voldemort, gesturing to the wand in his hand.

"My Lord, you have performed extraordinary magic with this wand." Snape replied.

"I have performed my usual magic, Severus. _I _am extraordinary, but the wand is mediocre. It works only as well as my previous wand."

Snape paused, his mind desperately trying to come up with words to reassure Voldemort. To come up with anything that would allow him to leave the Shrieking Shack. "My Lord, if you would only let me go and search for Potter, I could bring him back here."

"No, I have already told you Severus. Potter does not need searching for. He will come to me, soon enough."

"But what if he is killed before he has the chance?" Snape asked.

"My orders were clear; capture Potter and kill his friends." Voldemort replied. "The orders will be followed."

"My Lord..." Snape began, but Voldemort cut him off.

"Do you know why I summoned you here, Severus?" Voldemort asked, still turning the wand over with his fingers.

"Not precisely, my Lord..." He replied, averting his gaze.

"The Elder Wand will not work properly for me, as I am not its true master." Voldemort said slowly. "You killed Albus Dumbledore, the wand pledges its allegiance to the wizard who kills its owner."

Snape looked both stunned and afraid, stepping backwards away from Voldemort slightly.

"You see Severus; you are the true master of the wand." Voldemort said, rising from his seat. "I must be the master if I am to kill Harry Potter." His eyes flashed with twisted excitement, as he raised his wand.

"No, my Lord!" cried Snape, raising his own wand in a futile attempt. Harry felt white hot rage flash across his scar, and lunged forward on impulse.

"No!" He yelled, at the same time as Snape, raising his wand. Voldemort's head spun around, looking straight at Harry. A hiss sounded from the corner of the room where Nagini was coiled in her sphere, her eyes also locked on Harry.

Snape yelled a second time. "Potter, no!"

Voldemort screamed with malice and pleasure, a terrible hiss leaving his mouth. "_Kill the boy!_"

The bubble around Nagini shimmered and vanished and the muscular serpent fell on the table, shattering it into bits. Like a coiled spring, she shot herself across the room. Her eyes fell onto Harry's neck, all four of her fangs bared. Snape fired off a spell, but the green jet of light bounced off her skin and hit the ceiling.

Harry turned his body and attempted to dodge the flying snake, but her fangs pierced the skin in his left arm. The force of the bite knocked him off balance, and he fell to the ground. The heavy snake hit the wall of the decrepit shack, breaking through and landing outside.

Harry felt a burning pain in his arm, and felt the warmth of blood soaking into his jumper. Voldemort stared at the wound in disbelief. He could not deliver a mortal blow with his wand, as it had failed so many times before. He would not risk the Elder Wand being shattered like Lucius Malfoy's. Nagini's venom would be enough to kill the boy in minutes.

Snape looked down at Harry, then to Voldemort. "It is done my Lord, Potter will die soon."

"Yes, he will..." Voldemort said, maintaining a cool resolve. Then the reality dawned on him. "Potter is dead by my hand, finally." He threw his head back and screamed '_Morsmorde!_'

He shot the spell through the gaping hole in the ceiling, watching as the Dark Mark grew larger and illuminated the sky for all to see.

"I can oversee Potter's... departure, my Lord." Snape said coldly, staring Voldemort in the eyes. "You have important matters to take care of, I trust?"

Voldemort nodded, his mind clouded and confused with the sheer joy of his victory. He turned on the spot and vanished into darkness.

Snape turned to Harry and fell to his knees. "It wasn't supposed to end like this, Potter! I was the one who was supposed to die!" He turned Harry so he was sitting up against the wall.

"How long does that stuff take to kill you?" Harry asked, clutching his burning wound.

"Minutes..." said Snape, inspecting the wound. Their eyes met, and Snape found himself staring into Lily Potter's green eyes once more. "I failed her..." he said, tears cascading down his cheeks. "I was supposed to keep you safe."

"You did, this was my fault. You couldn't have stopped it." He said soothingly, grabbing for his hand.

"I could have tried harder; I could have taken the bite instead." He said, looking away from Harry.

"Look at me." Harry said, weakly. "You didn't fail her..."

"Yes I did!" cried Snape, clutching his wand tightly in his fist.

"There's no time left... Voldemort won..." said Harry slowly.

"There is still time yet." Snape said, raising his wand quickly. With a flick, he severed the sleeve from Harry's jumper. It revealed four puncture marks, each one oozing with blood and venom. Snape lowered his wand over the area, and muttered a spell similar to one Harry had heard Snape cast before. It was almost like a lullaby, which Snape sang under his breath. A blue glow shone from the tip of his wand, splitting into four beams which coiled their way around the wound. Each beam covered a puncture, sealing the skin and giving the appearance of scar tissue.

"I may be able to slow the poison, but if it reaches your heart..." Snape said, tears still streaming down his cheeks. He then moved his wand to Harry's chest, placing his hand over where his heart was. The same blue light shone underneath his hand, repelling the venom from flooding his entire body.

"I'm sorry Harry, but this is necessary..." said Snape, quickly making a cut in Harry's left arm. He then drew out an empty glass vial, and held it against the bleeding vein. A thick, black substance trickled out, into the glass vial. With each drop that Snape collected, Harry felt his head becoming clearer and his vision returning to its normal clarity.

The pain in Harry's arm was travelling down from his shoulder, and out through the cut Snape had made at his elbow. The burning sensation caused by the venom slowly faded, and soon the black fluid had all been flushed into the vial. Snape quickly sealed the vial and tucked it into his robes.

"Your arm is damaged, but at least you will live..." Snape whispered, still kneeling next to Harry. "Perhaps now, Lily will forgive me." Fresh tears made their way down his cheeks.

They sat in silence for several minutes, Harry still clutching at his useless left arm. His shoulder felt broken and he could not move it at all. He now had four hole-shaped scars on his upper arm, marking Nagini's enormous bite. However the cut Snape had made through Harry's vein had healed without a mark.

Finally, Snape spoke. "Thank you, Harry." It felt strange not calling him 'Potter', but he felt Harry deserved better than that now.

"Don't mention it." Harry said, with a meagre smile. "Thank you, too."

Snape nodded. "You're the only piece of her I have left." He said, quietly.

"You still love her don't you?" he asked.

Snape's fists clenched tightly and rage boiled up inside him. "I always have. He took her away from me."

"Who, my Dad?" Harry asked quietly.

"Both he and the Dark Lord took her away... Your father didn't end her life though; I can forgive him a thousand times compared to what the Dark Lord did." He said, and fired a patronus charm. A silver doe galloped around the shack, bounding off the walls and floor before it slowly faded into nothing.

"You brought us the sword?" asked Harry, in disbelief. "Why couldn't you just give it to us?"

"And allow the Dark Lord to see that I had helped you?" Snape asked. "You had to earn it, just like any other worthy Gryffindor."

"Well it's over now, how do I kill him on my own in this sort of state?" Harry asked.

"You were never on your own, Harry." Snape said, placing a hand gently on his injured shoulder. He looked into Snape's eyes and saw a glint of light flash through them. "Never forget, that help will always be given to those at Hogwarts who ask for it."


End file.
